Care home out of special measures

A care home has been taken out of special measures – but inspectors say improvements are still needed.

Clovelly House, in Station Road, March, was placed into special measures in February last year after receiving an overall rating on ‘inadequate’ by the Care Quality Commission (CQC).

At the time, inspectors also found multiple breaches of regulation related to residents’ health and safety and their welfare.

The home was made to complete an action plan to address the issues. Further admissions were also restricted.

While improvements have been made and all previous regulation breaches addressed, the CQC gave the services an overall rating of ‘requires improvement’.

It specifically focused on three out of five key areas for this latest inspection, and the home was awarded ‘good’ for the service being safe and effective.

However, the leadership was rated ‘inadequate’.

The report says: “...although there had been improvements in the management of the service, these had not been sufficiently embedded and instilled for us to be confident that the improvements will be sustained.”

The inspector highlighted that while “most staff” were using personal protective equipment properly, two were seen “not wearing their masks in quite the right way”.

“If infection prevention and control procedures had been fully embedded in practice, staff would not have been wearing their masks incorrectly,” the report says.

Nevertheless, staff, residents and families spoke positively of Clovelly House’s turnaround.

Staff were receiving training in various areas and the inspector highlighted that management are “developing a culture of learning and improvement”.

It was also noted the knowledge was being transferred to the care provided to residents, who are being “supported to have maximum choice and control of their lives.”

The report said: “A member of staff who had worked in other care homes told us they had not met a manager who knew so much about the people who lived at the home."

Relatives who were interviewed also said they were “happy” with the service and that there had been improvements in the management.

“I’d recommend Clovelly House to anyone,” one relative told the inspector.

A CQC inspector visited Clovelly House on November 26, 2020. The final report was published this year on January 28 and previous restrictions on admissions have now been lifted.

Clovelly House is run by Malcolm George.